1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to technology for diagnosing the failure of a manufacturing apparatus. In particular, it is related to a failure diagnosis method and failure diagnosis system using a group controller or CIM, which manages a manufacturing apparatus from a higher level of a manufacturing process and performs the control of the manufacturing apparatus using a network.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a conventional semiconductor device manufacturing process, unexpected failure of a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus increases manufacturing costs from the viewpoint of capacity utilization of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus due to the unexpected suspension of manufacturing required to recover from such failure. In particular, a failure that occurs during the manufacturing process invites on increase in defects in semiconductor devices being processed as well as a reduction in yield due to waste, and directly causes manufacturing costs to increase. Some semiconductor manufacturing apparatus is managed on the premise of failure and life span. For example, evacuation pumps such as dry pumps and mechanical booster pumps are regularly overhauled and replaced. Usually they are replaced early, having a margin of safety ahead of an expected life span determined based on experience in order to avoid catastrophic failure of the semiconductor device or the target of processing due to, for example, the closing down and suspension of the rotating mechanism during the manufacturing process. This, however, is not beneficial because of the increased costs for maintenance.
In addition, a failure of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus does not always occur with high reproducibility, and there are cases where failures occur during film deposition outside of the predicted average life span.
For problems such as those mentioned above, countermeasures are often taken such as continuing to use apparatus to the limits of the life span so as to minimize maintenance costs and using a method for preventing unexpected failure, other than the average life span, which continuously monitors the temperature and the value of current consumed for the vacuum pump system, sets thresholds for these values, and then when the temperature or the value of the current is above each corresponding threshold, gives a warning to perform maintenance on the vacuum pump system. In the case where the manufacturing apparatus is used in a certain steady condition under limited situations, it is possible to set up a typical value of temperature and current, for example, a threshold value based on a time average value under steady conditions. However, when accommodating the manufacturing of many varieties of semiconductor devices, since each of the manufacturing processes are accommodated in the same manufacturing apparatus, the process conditions required also differ and there is a problem in that one universal threshold value cannot be decided upon as a standard for predicting the failure of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus.